


Waiting For You

by Quirky_Baller



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, And Harry Potter reference, Bit OC, F/F, Mostly Erin/Jillian, Scholastic Bowl AU, There is some homophobic language, and homophobia, maybe a subtle Wynonna Earp reference?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-07-26 15:22:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7579282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quirky_Baller/pseuds/Quirky_Baller
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Scholastic Bowl AU where the team tries to form a team while Erin falls for Jillian. Mostly focuses on the two lovebirds.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Waiting For You

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so basic Scholastic Bowl format in my experience is usually 24 toss ups. If a team (any of the two teams) answers a toss-up correctly, they usually get 3 bonus questions (not related to "one of 24" tossups they answer). Each toss-up and bonus question is worth 10 points (so 960 points if one team answers everything correctly). It's usually two teams of five, but a team can play with less than five and a team with more than five can put in substitutions.

Initially, Erin is hesitant. It takes some convincing, and some cursing, from Abby to go to the first meeting. Erin doesn't see the point. She has Math Team. Abby has Science Olympiad. Both have 4.0's and a path to college to maintain. They simply just don't have the time to help start up a club. 

And yet, Erin finds herself sitting in the front of the chemistry classroom after school Tuesday. Abby is checking something on her phone as they slowly wait for the clock to tick to 3:30. The sooner they start, the sooner they finish. Erin's fingers start to tap mindlessly. 

At exactly 3:29, the door opens and a tall African American girl walks in. Erin nods appreciatively at the history textbook tucked under her arm. It takes her a moment to figure out who the girl is until the name blares in her head. Patty Tolan; the resident historian in her APUSH class. Patty walks up to her, just as surprised to see Erin in the room.

"Erin?" Patty asks hesitantly, smiling nonetheless. "I didn't know you were interested in joining Scholastic Bowl."

Erin gives an awkward chuckle before saying, "Oh me? No no, I'm not interested. Abby here," She gestures to her best friend who's still on her phone. "Wanted to come. She dragged me with her."

"Oh, that's nice," Patty says before silence eclipses the girls. She sits right behind Erin. Erin hears the creaking of the textbook. After a few page flips, she hears the desk creak as Patty leans forward and gets lost in their latest chapter. The bell rings right at 3:30 and the door opens again. 

Abby puts her phone down and smiles at the person standing in the doorway. "Holtzy!" She exclaims. "Finally! I thought you were going to be late!"

Erin looks at Jillian Holtzmann and feels flushed when the blonde winks at her. Maybe Scholastic Bowl wouldn't be too bad.

* * *

 

Their first competition doesn't go too bad. Of course, Mr. Bradley their sponsor put them up against one of the best teams in the state. It doesn't help that there's only 4 of them competing against 5 other brainiacs. 

They lose by 150 points, a mere 4 toss ups. Despite being disinterested at first, Erin gets disappointed at their loss. She tries to push them harder at practice.

"Erin, it was the first competition," Abby whines. 

"Yeah baby girl, what did you expect?" Patty asks. "Us crushing them?"

Erin gets ready to retort when a single pringle chip appears in her sight. Her eyes follow the chip down the arm of a certain blonde. Holtzmann's other arm is elbow deep in the Pringles can. When she looks at Holtzmann, she gets a shrug, a swallow, and a rakish grin. After swallowing her own tension, Erin turns back to Abby and Patty. 

"I'm sorry," Erin admits reluctantly. "I'm just used to winning. I want us to win!"

* * *

 

Their first win comes in their fourth competition against their rival school. It's a close one, only 10 points, a single question, but a win's a win. On the ride back to school, Erin happily chats with Abby. She only stops when she sees Holtzmann about to sleep on Patty's shoulder.

"Jillian," Erin says tentatively. The use of the first name makes the blonde snap her eyes open and focus on Erin. Patty and Abby also turn their head to the brunette. 

"What up boss?" Holtz murmurs with a hint of a smile. She rapidly blinks to buy a few more minutes of consciousness. Erin swears that she was fluttering them instead.

"You're about to go to sleep. You seemed energetic earlier..." Erin trails off thinking of how pumped and cute the blonde appeared before they competed. 

"Up all night studying," Holtzmann replies. She sits up fully, staring intently at Erin. She grins and says, "It was worth it."

The ride remains silent after that. Abby and Erin resort to whispering while Patty reads on her phone. Soft puffs can be heard from her shoulder as Jillian slumbers on. Erin takes moments to look at her. She has never seen a cuter sight.

When the bus arrives, Holtzmann immediately wakes up and gets off. The three see her jump into another car and seconds later, she's gone. Erin and Abby turn to Patty who smiles at the spot the car left from.

"Why was she up all night?" Abby asks, concern written all over her face. "She never studies for tests."

Patty shrugs. "Baby girl was up all night studying literature. Didn't ya'll notice that we was answering more literature questions? Holtzy won us the match!"

"Why all night though?" Erin exclaims. "That wasn't necessary."

Patty only shakes her head at Erin and says, "She said she knows you wanted to win." 

Abby shakes her head in disapproval. Erin doesn't notice. The only thing Erin thinks about for the rest of the night is Jillian's gesture. The gesture keeps her smiling until the next practice.

* * *

 

"Look, it's unfair that Holtzy has been staying up all night studying literature," Abby points at their teammate, snoozing in the desk in front of her. Erin looks over and resists the urge to coo. Her attention goes back to Abby who insists, "We should either find one more person or someone should help her."

 

"I can help her!" Kevin chimes excitedly. Erin first smiles at his enthusiasm but grimaces along with Abby at his declaration.

Kevin wasn't exactly the  _smartest_ cookie in the jar but his energy was infectious. His support from the second practice onwards impressed the girls. And while he was nice to look at it, his brain often made them... cringe.

"No, no," Patty quickly interjects. At his frown, she adds, "It's okay baby. You stick with the miscellaneous stuff." She looks at Abby hopelessly. "I'm covering the history and politics stuff. I'm not sure I can add literature to the load."

"I can do it."

Erin's statement, her first since the start of practice, attracts raised eyebrows from Abby and Patty while Kevin claps gleefully. Holtz's light snores keep the room from going completely silent. 

Erin looks at the raised eyebrows and raises her hands. "Look, we can make it work. Jill and I take half the literature while I stick to math. Abby, you take some math and science. Jill takes the other half of science with literature. Patty, you stick to history while we chime in occasionally. Kevin will _only_ answer miscellaneous questions."

"Let's do it!"

The 3 girls and Kevin jump when they hear Holtzmann. The blonde casually leans back in her seat, propping her legs on the desk. She reaches into her bag, pulling out a can of Monster and some Pringles. She grins at Abby, Patty, and Kevin. She winks at Erin and Erin only smiles back. Her heart thumps erratically.  

"So Erin," Holtzmann says, munching on a chip. "When do we start studying?"

* * *

 

Erin expects the Holtzmann household to be as eccentric as the girl who lives there. She expects mismatched furniture, walls painted multiple colors, with beakers and notebooks all over the place. She's pleasantly caught off guard when she sees Holtz fish out a key and open the door to a house in the nicer parts of town. After a wave, gesture to the house, and "After you my lady,", her eyes bug at the fancy foyer she enters. She hears random voices but doesn't dwell on them as she lets Jillian lead her away.

Holtz leads her up a staircase, but the only thing she focuses on is Holtz's hand within hers. It's warm and small but feels comfortable. She grins when she sees the blonde's room. Notebooks all over the place. Machine parts sitting in a corner. Piles of books on several surfaces. Other than that, it's a normal room. The walls are an olive green that matches several of Jillian's clothes. There's even a poster of Albert Einstein above the window covered in snow.

Erin doesn't realize that she's standing in the middle of the room until she hears a cough from Holtzmann. Her heart almost forgets to pang when she realizes her hand is empty. She turns around to see the blonde casually leaning against the door. She grins at Erin and crosses her arms. 

"So," She says. "Whaddya think?"

Erin's throat dries up at the dimples shining on her. Her stomach tightens up as she mutters, "It's how I'd imagine your room would look like."

Holtzmann beams.

* * *

 

As competitions and practices build up, the team gets better. Soon they qualify for sectionals and Erin is beyond ecstatic. A few more wins would get them at Nationals. 

"This speculative fiction author wrote about the future in 802,701 AD-"

 

Erin buzzes in and proudly answers, "HG Wells."

Kevin nods in an impressed manner and looks for another question. Erin turns Holtz, who's only smiling at her. Not grinning, but actually  _smiling_. Erin only counts her blessings that she's sitting in a chair. Her knees turn to jello and she knows she would've fallen if she stood. Practice is unusually quiet without Patty and Abby with them, but it's nice. In a 30 question span, she and Jillian only struggle to answer the miscellaneous sports question which Kevin easily answers. 

They soon wrap up at 5 and Kevin bids them goodbye before rushing down to the bus. Erin accompanies Holtzmann to her locker and easy conversation flows between them. 

"Jill," Erin says. "I noticed that you answer the math questions as quick as I do. And you don't use paper and pencil even though you can!"

The blonde shrugs and says, "Paper and pencil are for dudes. And I just got lucky. The few we got weren't too bad compared to the ones you usually answer in our competitions." She looks at Erin appraisingly and adds, "I can't answer the complicated ones you get."

Erin blushes at the subtle compliment while Holtz chuckles. Only she could flirt successfully in an academic setting.

"You're cute when you blush," Holtzmann says. "You should do it more often." Erin chokes on air and her blush intensifies. Holtzmann smiles approvingly as she stops at her locker. Erin wonders if she'll ever see Jillian blush as well.

* * *

 

Erin gets her wish two days later, but not in the way she expects. Or wants. She and Abby talk and walk on their way to AP Physics when they see Holtzmann emerge from a classroom. One step out and she's knocked into the wall by a jock. 

"Out of my way dyke!" 

He and his cronies laugh as Holtzmann struggles to get up and pick up her stuff. All eyes in the hallway are on them. Erin feels Abby leave her side and rush over to help Jillian. She watches as they gather everything and Jillian glances her way. Immediately, a red tint covers her cheeks and tears appear in her eyes. Abby walks her down the hallway. 

All Erin sees is red.

* * *

 

"Holtz, are you going be okay on your own? I can skip Physics, it's not an issue."

Abby means to look at Holtzmann, but her eyes keep wandering to the bruise on her friend's stomach. She drags her eyes back to Holtzmann's and gets an easy going smile.

"I'll be fine Abbs," She promises. "We'll just ice this baby and boom! Bye bye bruise. Who knows? Maybe I'll get a scar. Chicks dig scars."

Abby rolls her eyes and shakes her head at her friend's declaration. She inwardly smiles as her friend appears to come back. 

"Hey guys! Guess who else wants to join the party?"

Jillian and Abby stare at Patty confusedly until Erin walks in behind her a moment later. Abby gasps at Erin's cut lip. She immediately rushes forward, leaning in to inspect it closer. 

"She's okay Abby," Patty tells the shorter brunette. "Just a split lip and bruised knuckles."

"You didn't!" Abby exclaims at Erin. Erin looks down, not looking her friend in the eyes. She shifts uncomfortably under the weight of Abby's stare. "Of all the people-"

"Thank you bringing the girls Abby and Patty," The nurse suddenly appears and says. "You both can leave. They're in capable hands I promise."

Patty gives them all a jaunty wave while Abby gives one final glance at Erin. She then looks at Jill who only winks. Abby only sighs but leaves. The nurse promises an ice pack for Erin and leaves her with Holtzmann. 

"You really hit that guy?" Jill asks. "For me?" 

"Of course!" Erin replies, walking up to her friend. "He shouldn't have said what he said." She sees the bruise and drops to a whisper. "That's what he did to you?"

Holtz only nods, focusing on Erin's bruised knuckles. She gingerly picks up Erin's hand and brings it to her lips. She bestows a soft kiss and carefully places Erin's hand down on her lap. The brunette stares at her hand too transfixed to blush. Erin knows it's scientifically impossible, but she feels tingles in the exact spot where Holtzmann's lips were. Her thoughts swirl at the possibility of the same tingles on her lips.

She shyly gazes up to the blonde who gives her a soft smile. "You know what they say; kisses make everything better!"

That smile is the only thing that gets Erin through her parents' lecture that night.

* * *

 

"You really like her, don't you?"

Abby's question interrupts Erin's stream of thoughts. Most of which center around the adorable blonde playing rock paper scissors with Kevin. A smile tugs at her lips as she watches Jill finally play scissors, allowing Kevin to win. She tries not to focus on the fact that he only uses rock. 

Erin turns to Abby and nods. "I really like her," The brunette quietly admits. "And I think she likes me."

"Of course she does," Patty interjects, sliding in next to Abby. "Girl, Holtz has been trying to woo you from day one. She wouldn't stay up studying literature for just anyone." After a moment, she pouts and adds, "Not even me!"

"Or me," Abby says pointedly. "Erin, I love you. You're my best friend-"

"-But if you hurt Holtz, I will put you in a world of pain," Patty continues in a serious tone. 

"You know, I'm kinda surprised Holtz hasn't asked you out yet," Abby muses. "I wonder what's she waiting for."

"I'm waiting until after Nationals," Holtzmann replies cheerily, causing Erin to jump. "Don't want to distract our captain here." She bows her head and gives Erin a two finger salute.

As Patty and Abby laugh, Erin mutters, "Too late," without either of them hearing. She looks at Jillian whose eyes widen at the realization. 

* * *

 

 _Buzz!_ "Beloved."

Mr. Bradley nods in disdain. "Correct. That's ten more points for Mercado High. At this time, we are half through the round. Mercado High leads 200-150. Let's take a 10 minute break."

Erin grumbles at the score but says nothing. Her eyes travel over to the boy who stole their bonus. He smirks at her. She clenches her fists when she sees him, Roan of Mercado High, stare at Jill. She slightly calms down when the blonde raises an eyebrow in his direction. Resisting the urge to grit her teeth, Erin focuses on the confused look in Holtz's eyes. 

 _'She looks good with any emotion,'_  Erin thinks to herself. Withholding a dreamy sigh, she walks over to the rest of girls and Kevin. Patty starts their talk for strategy. Filtering her friend out, Erin stares at Roan who keeps glancing over at Jillian. 

"That Roan dude is good," Patty grumbles. "He's answering questions left and right, especially the literature ones." She glances between Holtzmann and Erin. "You guys have to do something or else we're losing this one. Bye bye state."

"Losing" snaps Erin out of her intense staring contest. "I'll take care of it."

They win the match 310-210. Roan doesn't answer another question.

* * *

 

"You know, he still tried to get my number."

Erin blinks before looking at Jill. Just a second ago the side beside her was empty. Now the blonde looks at her with a hint of a smile, yet with annoyance in her eyes. 

The brunette gulps and asks, "What did you say?"

Holtzmann scrunches her nose, shrugs, and leans back. "Not much. I'm more of a chicks and monogamy kinda gal. Dudes don't make the cut." She looks up at Erin and grins mischievously. _Y_ _ou,_ on the other hand, get the lead."

"Even without auditioning?" Erin jokes back. 

Holtzmann shakes her head and places her hand in Erin's and only says, "You got the part babe."

* * *

They take to holding hands in private. Usually at practice. Abby and Patty gush at the sight while Kevin winks at both of them. Erin doesn't quite understand the hoopla her body goes through. A tingle and a sense of comfort battle each other when she holds Jillian's hand. She worries about sweating which only doubles the sweat production in her hands. And while the possibility of dating makes her want to fly away, the warmth in her hand grounds her instead. She's only 17, but Erin swears that this must be what love feels like. 

 

Later, Erin grins at the Holtzmann's text as she walks up to her front door. Entering, she shrugs off her sweater and backpack. She freezes at the sight of her parents in the living room. They stare at her clearly waiting for her. The smile quickly turns into a frown. Fear fills Erin when she sees the envelope with the school's logo in her father's hand.

* * *

 

"They kicked you out!?" Abby exclaims. 

Erin shakes her head vigorously as she squeezes into the pajama pants. "We had a fight and I walked out."

Abby's eyes get big. Abby whispers, "Did you tell them about Holtz?"

Another head shake. "It was over my grades. I've gotten 2 B's the past semester. No more 4.0." With that, Erin collapses on the bed. The tears make their way down her face and her throat tightens. The streak of straight A's over. The love and affection of her parents would dissipate soon. 

Abby sits on the bed and wraps an arm around Erin trying to sooth her. After several minutes, Erin reduces to hiccups. Leaning on Abby's shoulder, she watches Abby speed dial a number. 

"I need you here. Now."

Abby hangs up and when Erin asks who it was, Abby remains coy. After 5 minutes of incessant questioning (Erin) and humming (Abby), a car noisily drives up to the window. Abby walks over and opens the window. She gives a thumbs up to the person outside the window, piquing Erin's curiosity further. The brunette walks over and hears a soft voice sing. 

"See the stone set in your eyes, see the thorn twist in your side, I'll wait for you," Holtzman sings. Erin ignores Abby mutter, "I hate U2," and leans on the windowsill. Her eyes light up watching Holtz sing, phone in hand, and spin in circles. Soon circles turn to hip gyrations which turn to a dance style that Erin can only identify as Luna Lovegood-ish.

"Sleight of hand and twist of fate, on a bed of nails she makes me wait, and I wait without you," Holtzman croons. Erin runs away from the windowsill, leaving Abby and Jillian confused, but the blonde continues. 

"With or without you, with or without you," Holtz rubs the back of her neck, hoping Erin didn't take the "without you" too seriously. "Through the storm, we reach the shore, you gave it all but I want more."

Just as she gets ready to sing, "And I'm waiting for you,", the front door burst open. Erin runs out and runs into Holtz's arms. The blonde holds her steady. Erin feels the tears form in her eyes again, but Holtz doesn't go. She holds on and leads the two of them as they sway to U2. 

Abby watches with a smile and later insists of a strong allergic reaction to the Irish band. 

* * *

 

 

"This NBA superstar was born in Philidelphia but spent most of his childhood in Italy-"

Kevin buzzes in and loudly answers, "Who is Kobe Bryant!?"

"Yeah, yeah," The moderator says. "That's correct, but you don't need to answer in question form. This isn't Jeopardy!"

Kevin ignores the man and smiles. He lifts his hand up toward Abby but puts it down immediately. He frowns when he sees the other girls looking at their desks apathetically. He blinks away a tear when he realizes he isn't getting his usual high five. In a rare moment of clarity, he notices the score and cringes. Blowouts are fun to watch. Blowouts are fun to cause. Blowouts are _not_ fun to experience. 

 _'We're getting blown out,'_ He thinks sadly to himself. His eyes go back to the score, glad to see the girls get 30 more points in bonus questions.  _'Still a blowout.'_

The round ends a little later. The girls and Kevin get up to exchange handshakes and "good game" with the other team. Erin swallows back tears as she shakes hands. The whole team manages to stay respectful. They all avoid Roan whose eyes still remain on Holtzmann. 

"Dude, she's gay! Let. It. Go!" Patty all but screams at him before they leave. He scowls at her but says nothing. The aspiring historian puts an arm on Holtzmann's shoulder and shepherds her away from the creepy boy. The blonde walks up to Erin, who's still glaring at Roan. 

After putting both her hands on Erin's shoulder, Jillian asks, "You okay comrade?" Looking over to Roan she sticks her tongue out at him. He flushes and takes a step back, tripping over a chair. 

Erin gives a small smile and nods, ignoring the laughs around them. "I am now." She grabs Holtz's cheeks and pulls her in for a quick kiss. It only lasts for the briefest of seconds but both girls swear an angelic voice made its presence known. Erin pulls back with a grin and asks, "How about that date?"

Holtzmann pulls back slightly, smiling at Erin as if she knows something the other girl doesn't. She pumps her fist in the air and yells, "Boo to the Yah!" At Erin's bemused face, she quickly nods with a smile.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Song is With or Without by U2. I don't take any credit, just some inspiration. 
> 
> Hit me up the bisexual-huffleclaw.tumblr.com for talk about prompts and Ghostbusters in general if you'd like =D


End file.
